Page 27 of Midnight Auto Parts

“Get a room.”

We only broke apart when lack of oxygen screamed in my brain, but I couldn’t let him go. He seemed to have the same problem, his grip on me unbreakable, his heart pounding between us so hard I worried it might shatter.

A hard jab of pain radiated out from the crown of my head, and I yelped as it smarted a second time.

“Badb,” Kierce growled, shielding me as best he could from the next pebble to rain down.

“Heh.”

Head swinging toward the source of the laughter, I spotted Josie and her plant egging on Badb.“Mary.”

“Ahem.” She cut her eyes left. “Unless you want to be an internet sensation?”

Three teenagers stood on the sidewalk with their phones pointed at us. The two girls were swoony, but I caught the boy, who was younger, flipping the camera forward and back to cut his disgusted expressions into the video. I had no idea how long they had been standing there, watching the show, but they must have arrived during our kiss. Had they strolled up during the hymn, or before I satisfied my curiosity about how Kierce tasted, she would have gotten our attention sooner.

“What does she mean?” Kierce’s fingers slid from my hair. “They’re filming us?”

“Yes.” I transferred my glare onto the kids, who scattered with cackled laughter. “Probably to show their friends the mating rituals of old people.” I snorted at his growl of annoyance. “I’m joking. Mostly. I mean they could splice itinto a clip on how cringe we are, but we were only a passing amusement.”

“They stole our first kiss.” A sterling gleam brightened his eyes. “They had no right.”

Old as he was, I wasn’t surprised to learn Kierce was possessive or held chivalrous views.

Honestly, in an age where every kiss and touch were documented and scattered across the internet into the homes and lives of total strangers, I couldn’t blame him for his anger in having our first kiss recorded for mass consumption or possibly dumped and forgotten in a digital trash can.

There was afeed the beastmentality I had adjusted to as popular culture evolved around us that Kierce had yet to experience until now. People wanted to be relevant. They wanted to be seen, heard, envied. And when the inevitable happened, and they ran out of fresh content about their own lives, they looked to others to provide sustenance for them and their followers.

Today was, apparently, our turn on the menu.

“This is the world we live in.” I cupped his cheek in my palm. “They didn’t mean any harm.”

“You’re not upset.” His gaze dipped to my mouth. “You don’t mind?”

“My boyfriend kissed me.” I fizzed with happiness. “Who cares who saw it?” I swiped my thumb across his tight lips. “I’m not going to let them ruin my buzz.” I dropped my hand. “Are you?”

“No.” He rested his forehead against mine. “I kissed my—girlfriend?—and she liked it.”

The thread of worry under his bravado pinched my heart, forcing me to recall his fears of inadequacy.

“Very much.” I brushed my nose against his. “So much she might even let you do it again later.”

Minus the audience.

Long after we returned home, minus Josie, who had convinced the chatty air plant to come live with her, probably to spy on Carter in her absence, I couldn’t sit still. Too much energy swirled within me from the cleansing. I scrubbed my apartment then organized my office then mulched around Elmo. I was about to wash the wagon, which didn’t need it since the cleaning spell kept it spotless, when Kierce found me.

“Let’s go for a run.” He tossed me my orange vest. “You need to burn through your excess.”

“Okay.” I jerked it on before I registered I was already sprinting. “First one to Bonaventure wins.”

The cemetery wasn’t far, especially not when I was motivated, but scenery blurred past in a daze.

“Feeling better?”

Glancing over my shoulder, I spotted Kierce exactly one step behind me. “Yes.”

“Good.” He closed the gap. “Then you won’t mind a little competition.”

“Bring it on.” I was euphoric from the slap of sneakers on pavement. “Let’s do this.”

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